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The Bankruptcy and Financial Restructuring lawyers at Polsinelli understand how to address a client’s concerns when facing a distressed situation by applying years of restructuring experience in a cost-efficient manner. Polsinelli’s group of professionals utilizes a practical, hands-on approach to handle bankruptcy and financial restructuring issues whether on behalf of a Chapter 11 debtor, an official committee of unsecured creditors, or a party to bankruptcy litigation. Our lawyers have practiced in numerous different jurisdictions across the country, and we have lawyers available to assist clients across the country with lawyers located in such jurisdictions as Delaware, New York, Kansas City, St. Louis, Chicago, Arizona, Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. We have extensive experience with distress companies in numerous different industries. This experience includes serving as Delaware bankruptcy counsel and conflicts counsel to Creditors’ Committee of Energy Futures Holdings Corp., et al., the seventh largest chapter 11 bankruptcy case ever filed.

Our specialized experience includes:

Telecommunications

Retail

Health Care

Insurance

Real Estate

Trucking and Transportation

Hospitality

Manufacturing

Energy

We have represented various types of clients in all aspects of bankruptcy, insolvency, out of court workouts, and litigation matters, including:

Debtors and debtors in possession

Official and Ad Hoc Creditors’ Committees

Chapter 7 and 11 Trustees

Litigation and Liquidating Trustees

Secured and DIP lenders

Indenture Trustees, Noteholders, and Bondholders

Asset Purchasers

Landlords and Trade Creditors

Examiners

Plaintiffs and Defendants in Adversary Proceedings

Lead Counsel to EBH Topco, LLC, Elements Behavioral Health, Inc. and their affiliates in their chapter 11 bankruptcy cases

Lead counsel to ActiveCare, Inc. and its affiliate in their chapter 11 bankruptcy cases.

Lead counsel to Jet Midwest Group, LLC in its chapter 11 bankruptcy case.

Lead plaintiffs counsel of a class action consisting of more than 44,000 members in Residential Capital, LLC’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceeding, including representation of lead plaintiff on the official committee of unsecured creditors of Rescap.

Lead counsel to Creditors' Committee in Chapter 11 and special litigation counsel to Chapter 7 trustee and rural wireless provider Open Range Communications, Inc.

Counsel to German Insolvency Administrator in filing Chapter 15 bankruptcy in St. Louis, Missouri, seeking recognition of the German insolvency proceeding, to safeguard the assets and allow the German Insolvency Administrator to sell the German business as a going concern.

Chris Ward, Co-Chair of Polsinelli's Bankruptcy and Financial Restructuring Practice and Managing Shareholder of Polsinelli's Delaware office, recently participated in a roundtable discussion with Financier Worldwide. The discussion highlighted recent trends in bankruptcy litigation, creditors' strategies for exerting more influence on the bankruptcy process, and creative and consensual solutions to full-scale litigation, as well as the benefits of alternative dispute resolution methods.

On April 1, 2013, increases to certain dollar amounts provided for in the United States Bankruptcy Code will go into effect for all cases filed on or after April 1, 2013. The most relevant increases are with respect to the amount of priority claims allowed under the Bankruptcy Code.

In 2012, two decisions were published regarding Missouri foreclosure law and how obligors' deficiencies should be measured following foreclosures. The decisions were somewhat surprising given that Missouri law has been long-settled regarding how to measure deficiencies following foreclosures, and given that the long-settled law seemed well-justified by Missouri's statutory scheme governing foreclosure sales.

The Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware recently issued an opinion confirming a chapter 11 plan (i) based on a lock-up agreement between the debtor and its major creditors and (ii) containing third party releases that bound creditors unless they affirmatively "opted out" in a ballot actually returned to the balloting agent. In In re Indianapolis Downs, LLC, Judge Shannon confirmed the debtors' joint plan over the objection of the United States Trustee and several other creditors, holding to a theme espoused numerous times throughout the case: "that the filing of a Chapter 11 petition is an invitation to negotiate." In re Indianapolis Downs, LLC, No. No. 11-11046, 2013 WL 395137, at *7 (Bankr. D. Del. Jan. 31, 2013).

In our August 2011 Bankruptcy Report, we reported on the Seventh Circuit's decision in the Matter of River Road Hotel Partners, LLC, et al., 651 F.3d 642, 2011 WL 2547615 (7th Cir. June 28, 2011), which rejected earlier rulings by the Third and Fifth Circuits that a secured creditor did not have a right to credit bid at a sale of assets free and clear of liens under a plan of reorganization.

"Polsinelli Bankruptcy attorneys are collaborative and offer creative and cost-effective solutions. They are smart lawyers who understand their clients’ businesses, and provide straightforward and practical advice while helping them achieve positive results."